Ganjar Pranowo: Right Now We Are 'Pinched' COVID-19

Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo (Photo: Central Java Provincial Government's Website)

JAKARTA - Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo said that the COVID-19 incident that occurred in Indonesia had successfully corrected a number of things in the country. He made an analogy, this pagebluk is like 'pinching' the top brass of this country.

Because, in the aftermath of the existence of COVID-19, it made a number of improvements, including in the health sector. For this industry, initially Indonesia depended on imports, now no longer.

"Suddenly we were surprised because we were looking for reagents because there was only one supplier. Today, the Ministry of Health made a strategy to make a lot of suppliers so that we don't depend on one supplier," said Ganjar in an online discussion broadcast on YouTube, Tuesday, June 9.

In the early days of midnight, he said, the government was confused. Not only the government, the people are also panicking. But, over time, the government began to clean up. People who were afraid before, are now aware and are taking care to prevent the spread of the virus by wearing masks, washing their hands and keeping their distance.

On the other hand, Ganjar reminded the government to adopt the same attitude from the center to the regions. Because, when the attitudes issued are not the same, it will cause confusion and make the community victims.

"After a long period of time, we (the government) were not uniform, this community was what was really worried from the beginning (attitude), 'huh, just like this, it's just ignored'," he said.

So far, Ganjar has tried to provide advice on government policies in a way that is easy for the citizens to understand. The goal is that Central Java citizens, especially the elderly, have no trouble digesting government policies.

"Well, serious data can be given to those who are on the market," he explained.

He said that once there was an old merchant at the market who said that COVID-19 is a disease of city people. From the merchant's story, Ganjar realized that there were differences in the absorption of information between the people in his area.

Therefore, he also provides socialization in a language that is acceptable to the community. How, Ganjar reminded and invited the public to carry out health protocols according to government recommendations.

"The slot we fill is to invite them to know better by being a little pushy. 'Okay, that's okay. The important thing is that you wash your hands with soap every day. Wear a mask.' We have spoken with such a style, "he said.

From this pagebluk, Ganjar realized, the leadership side of the regional head would emerge. He can see which regional leaders are really working, or which are just looking for popularity and sensation.

He also became more aware of the problems in his area. For example, he once called a village head in the Central Java region. This communication was made after the village head suddenly vilified his government and the central government. In addition, this village head also felt that he was at odds with the community.

When Ganjar contacted the village head, he understood their difficulty in explaining the so many social assistance problems for residents affected by COVID-19. After that, he helped the village head solve the existing problems.

"Yes, don't bother. Just tell them (the community) the provisions are like this, stick them in the village hall," he concluded.